A/N: Yeah... this has been a LONG time coming, at least for me. I'm very sorry about how long it's taken me to actually get this out, but I still don't think it's my best work. The next chapter will be a lot better, and besides, it'll have Paris! That makes everything worth it. There's probably another five to ten chapters coming here. I don't think I'm going to be sequelling this one. After all... it's not quite as kooky as some of my other stories. I'll try to finish it within a reasonable time limit.
Jess's hand hung limply at his side. She couldn't help but want to hold it as they neared the door. It was like an appending apocalypse … yet he was so calm. He'd fractured two of his fingers. They wouldn't be usable for two weeks. Luke was not amused. The only person who didn't seem to mind was Jess himself. It was strange the way that things turned out.
"To the lion's den," Rory muttered under her breath.
"It won't be that bad," he shrugged off, knocking on the door. Her eyes slid over to him and she wished that she could obtain some of his blessed calm. Ever since he'd met his father, it was like nothing was affecting him.
"It's good to see you again Mr. Mariano… and Miss Gilmore, I presume?" asked the maid inside.
"Yes," Jess nodded, leading Rory inside. Something about this interaction was strange. How was it that a maid who was switched at least once a week knew who her boyfriend was?
"Jess," she murmured, wanting an answer, but she was cut short as Emily pranced into the room. Rory watched in horror as her grandmother looked them both over and then looked at Jess specifically. Her eyes were instantly attracted to his hand and there was the slightest tightening to her mouth.
"Good evening," she greeted.
"Good evening, Mrs. Gilmore," Jess nodded, and Rory just sort of shuffled from foot to foot, attempting to be as inconspicuous as possible.
"What happened to your hand?" Emily inquired sharply.
"Uh…" Rory started, but Jess took her hand in his uninjured one and squeezed it, signaling for her to stop.
"There was an incident… with my father," Jess explained hesitantly, but Emily's eyes seemed to widen slightly.
"Your father?" she repeated, and led them into the house. To say that Rory was confused in his moment would be something of a huge understatement. "You mean the one that left you?"
"Jess?" Rory wanted to cut in, but another squeeze told her to keep her mouth shut.
"Yes," Jess confirmed, and Emily's nostrils flared in anger.
"How… inconceivable of him," she barked in anger as she led them into the sitting room, where Richard was waiting.
"Ah… Jess, it's good to see you again," Richard greeted jovially.
"Jess?" Rory attempted again, but he sat her down as a means of telling her to be quiet.
"It's good to see you as well, Mr. Gilmore," Jess nodded.
"Please, Jess, call me Richard," the older man stated with a strange smile.
"Richard?" Rory croaked out, unbelieving of their friendly attitude towards the boyfriend that they had once hated.
"Have either of you read any good books lately?" Richard inquired blandly, shuffling his newspaper and putting it on a side table. This was one of the first times in her life she'd seen her grandfather willingly give up a newspaper without being scolded first.
"Richard, please, let's save this conversation for another time. Jess's father has returned," Emily interjected, eyeing Jess sympathetically.
"Your father?" Richard repeated, appalled.
"Grandma, grandpa… may I talk to Jess for a few minutes, alone?" Rory asked, rising to her feet and dragging Jess with her.
"Of course," Emily agreed, but it was obvious to see that she wasn't amused with their running away.
"Rory," Jess attempted to object, but she marched him into her grandfather's study before he could say anything else.
"How do they know about your father?" she inquired harshly once he closed the doors.
"It was apart of the deal," he replied almost instantly. There was a moment of hesitation, which she didn't like at all.
"Deal?" Rory asked shrilly, glaring at him.
"Yes… " he sighed, but didn't continue.
"What deal?" she bit.
"To get the prom tickets," he continued, dragging a hand through his hair.
"What do you mean? I thought that all you were doing was calling her on the phone!?" Rory shrieked, and Jess backed away, behind her grandfather's desk. He looked down at the surface for a few minutes and then looked back up at her.
"They told me that the only way I was taking you was if I allowed them to get to know me better," he finally admitted.
"So… what? All those times you told me you were busy last week, you were here?" she demanded.
"Not all of them… but mostly, yes," he nodded, shoving his good hand in his pocket and hugging the other one to his stomach.
"Why didn't you tell me?" she felt hot tears sliding down her face.
"Can you see yourself right now?" he pointed out. "What would you have done if I'd have told you that the only way I was allowed to take you to either prom was to suck up to your grandparents enough that they'd swing their influence around for me? You would have told me not to do it. Hell, you probably would have sabotaged me on my way here."
"I don't sabotage," Rory sniffled, looking away.
"You egged my car… I don't know what else you're capable of," he quipped, smirking just slightly.
Rory stared at him open mouthed. "I didn't egg your car!" she objected, but there was a not-so-subtle blush rising on her cheeks.
"Uh huh," he rolled his eyes and walked out from behind the desk, figuring it to be safe. "Rory… can we please just make it through this dinner? We have another three weeks before Stars Hollow prom, and they can get rid of my tickets as easily as I got them."
"How easy was it for you to get them?" she inquired suspiciously.
"I had to go golfing," he cringed, and they both had looks of disgust on their faces.
"Bin' there, done that," Rory grumped.
"Steam room?" he continued, even as he opened the door.
"Oh yeah," she sighed, offering him a small smile as he wrapped his bad hand around her waist and pulled her close.
-gGg-
"I can't believe what you've been through," Rory gaped as they left the house, both of them too tired for words.
"Good," Jess groaned, hanging his good arm over her shoulder and fingering her hair lightly.
"Chilton's prom is next Friday," she reminded him gently as they sauntered into the car.
"Is your mother still on about that leather?" he inquired absently, neither really paying too much attention to what the other was saying.
"Nah, but I found some suspicious looking pants in her sewing room," she continued on the ruse.
"I don't want to know," he shook his head and started the car.
"Good, because I don't want to tell you," she purred, leaning over and kissing his ear gently.
"I'm driving," he objected halfheartedly.
"Then stop," she shrugged. While having to 'behave' themselves all through dinner, Rory had time to ponder what he'd done in the past two weeks. He probably had to jump through every hoop imaginable to get those tickets, which, to her knowledge, included going golfing with her grandfather, being shown to her grandmother's friends, and having to go to some sort of party that was held at the Gilmore Mansion. To her, the instances would have been akin to having her eyes poked out. To him, it must have been like torture. Jess wasn't exactly a social butterfly.
"I can't stop," Jess muttered after a few seconds. She smiled against his throat and her eyes flickered up to his. They were desperately attempting to stay on the road.
"Jess," she groaned against his throat, and she jerked back when he pulled the car to the side of the road, not caring that two lanes of traffic were honking at him. The second that the car stopped, he grabbed her and yanked her into his lap. It was awkward at first, with her being pressed harshly against the shifter and the steering wheel, but she soon found an even ground and was able to curl up in his lap without being pressed against anything else.
His hands seemed to be everywhere at once, but she was used to that. Jess was very good with his hands. Her hands wound in his hair and ran butterfly kisses along the rest of his body, which she knew he loved more than her actually touching him.
"I love you," he moaned against her mouth, and she pulled back, biting her lip a little bit.
"I love you too," she whispered, her voice husky from their kissing. He pulled her back again, but this time it was soft, gentle almost.
"We have to get home," he attempted to convince them both, all the while continuing to run his hands over her back and then lower, to her thighs and gently underneath her skirt. Her breath caught in her throat and home was the farthest thing from her mind.
"No," she objected, shaking her head and crawling into the backseat.
"Rory," Jess said in warning, even as she pulled him with her. She kissed him to shut him up, all the while undoing the buttons on his shirt. "Rory…"
"Shh," she shook her head again and pulled him on top of her so that they were lying in the backseat of the car. They kissed, but she could feel the hesitance in his mouth. His hands were unsure for once, their normal confidence lacking in every movement.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked between kisses.
"Yes," she assured him, and he seemed to hesitate for a moment, before nodding and kissing her again. His hands regained their confidence and pushed beneath her skirt, yanking her panties down her body and tossing them somewhere else in the car.
It occurred to her midway through their act that, truly, she was sitting in the middle of a very public highway with clear windows and hundreds of people were driving past them every minute. Just as she was about to care, she felt her body tense up and her eyes screwed shut. Perhaps it was the very idea of people watching, but whatever it was, everything seemed hyper-aware.
When they were both finished, she curled her fingers into his hair and kissed him gently. Despite feeling like she was going to keel over at any second, she knew that they had to get back to Stars Hollow before her mother started to worry… let alone her father. Chris had decided to make the Gilmore Residence his un-official home until he was able to contact Sherry.
"Hey," Jess whispered against her throat and kissed her gently.
"Hi," she replied shyly, despite the fact that they were still completely naked and he was still inside her. Blushing profusely, she turned to look away and then looked back at him. "We should probably…"
"Yeah," he agreed, pulled away from her. They both let out a small sound of protest, but he kept moving anyway and they went through the ritual of replacing clothing.
As she was about to crawl back into the front seat, he grabbed her arm and pulled her around so that he could kiss her again. She returned the kiss in full force, her eyes clothing and her breathing picking up. She almost yanked him back to the seat again when he gently pushed her forward.
"We have to go home," he reminded her, yet again, and she nodded sullenly. Yet again, home was the farthest thing from her mind.